Arts

SQA arts award

The draft Culture (Scotland) Bill, published in December 2006, proposed giving every child in Scotland a "cultural entitlement"– the right to take part in culture.

This would further increase demand for trained and experienced artists who also have the skills to work with children and young people.

Children in Scotland, with YouthLink and the Scottish Arts Council, has developed a new professional development award, accredited by the Scottish Qualifications Authority, to provide training for artists to give them the skills for engagement to work with children and young people.

Children in Scotland will pilot delivery of this award through 2007/08.

The award will provide arts practitioners from across all forms with a basic understanding of the planning and teaching process, the organisation of learning scenarios, relevant legislation processes of engagement within different settings with different client groups and of developing sessions and programmes of work that promote an informed level of practice.

The awards aims to:

• create an opportunity where arts practitioners can increase their skills and knowledge in relation to working with children, young people and adults

• fill an identified need and provide professional development tailored to and specifically meeting the needs of arts practitioners across all art forms who wish to engage in education and community based practice

• enhance current arts provision for children, young people and adults across Scotland

• provide professional development opportunities within the arts field

• offer a nationally recognised qualification which is flexible enough to allow practitioners to work in a range of art forms across a wide range of different contexts.

To register your interest in the pilot courses, email jcranfield@childreninscotland.org.uk or phone 0131 222 2433.

Arts publications

The draft Culture (Scotland) Bill, published in December 2006, proposed that "cultural entitlements" be defined by local authorities.

Arts for all? Developing cultural entitlements for children in rural Scotland explores how cultural entitlements can be delivered in rural areas, where ensuring access to the arts is more challenging. And it explores the role of the arts workforce. Cultural entitlements would further increase demand for trained and experienced artists who also have the skills to work with children and young people, as well as requiring staff in education and community roles to have a deeper understanding of the value and potential of the arts.

As part of our commitment to sharing good practice and information, Children in Scotland has a number of arts and art-related publications which are available either for download or purchase, please click here.

Art competitions
Children in Scotland regularly runs national children's art competitions, often tied in to the theme of our European or annual conference that year.
There is a commitment within the organisation to supporting and nurturing the arts, and our competitions encompass all media, and invite entries from young people of all ages.

Details of art competitions in 2007 will appear on these pages.

Training

Our arts training events focus on practical skills development relevant to those working with children and young people. Training is delivered by experienced arts practitioners and offers and opportunity to explore a range of creative approaches which can be used to enhance current practice.

Comments from delegates:

"I've learned lots of new ideas, support what I've been doing, look forward to putting into practice"

"Really enjoyed the course, great people and great exercises. Surprised myself in doing things I never thought I had the confidence to do"

"Challenging, but lots learned that I can put directly into practice"

Details of arts-related workshops are available here.